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The ABC's of math: A genetic analysis of mathematics and its links with reading ability and general cognitive ability.

Creator

Hart, Sara, Petrill, Stephen, Thompson, Lee, Plomin, Robert

Abstract/Description

The goal of this first major report from the Western Reserve Reading Project Math component is to explore the etiology of the relationship among tester-administered measures of mathematics ability, reading ability and general cognitive ability. Data are available on 314 pairs of monozygotic and same-sex dizygotic twins analyzed across five waves of assessment. Univariate analyses provide a range of estimates of genetic (h²=.00-.63) and shared environmental influences (c²=.15-.52) across math... Show moreThe goal of this first major report from the Western Reserve Reading Project Math component is to explore the etiology of the relationship among tester-administered measures of mathematics ability, reading ability and general cognitive ability. Data are available on 314 pairs of monozygotic and same-sex dizygotic twins analyzed across five waves of assessment. Univariate analyses provide a range of estimates of genetic (h²=.00-.63) and shared environmental influences (c²=.15-.52) across math calculation, fluency and problem solving measures. Multivariate analyses indicate genetic overlap between math problem solving with general cognitive ability and reading, whereas math fluency shares significant genetic overlap with reading fluency and general cognitive ability. Further, math fluency has unique genetic influences. In general, math ability has shared environmental overlap with general cognitive ability and decoding. These results indicate that aspects of math that include problem solving have different genetic and environmental influences than math calculation. Moreover, math fluency, a timed measure of calculation, is the only measured math ability with unique genetic influences. Show less

Date Issued

2009

Identifier

FSU_migr_psy_faculty_publications-0008, 10.1037/a0015115

Format

Citation

Title

The Ability of Fourth Grade Students to Make Inferences When Reading Passages Containing Incongruent Text.

This study was designed to examine the extent to which young readers activate and integrate text concepts during reading. Fifty fourth grade students completed a group of norm-standardized tests of reading ability followed by a non-norm standardized test of inference recognition. The effects of reading ability on inference recognition were compared across texts that contained ambiguous sentences or unambiguous sentences. The results reveal that poor readers took longer to read ambiguous... Show moreThis study was designed to examine the extent to which young readers activate and integrate text concepts during reading. Fifty fourth grade students completed a group of norm-standardized tests of reading ability followed by a non-norm standardized test of inference recognition. The effects of reading ability on inference recognition were compared across texts that contained ambiguous sentences or unambiguous sentences. The results reveal that poor readers took longer to read ambiguous passages as compared to unambiguous passages. This difference between passages was nonsignificant for good readers. Show less

This study examined social information processing theory's predictions that the accuracy of children's perceptions is associated with their peer acceptance. Specifically, it evaluated concurrent and prospective associations between the accuracy of children's perceptions and their peer acceptance, assessed by sociometric status and by positive and negative peer nominations. In addition, this study evaluated if accuracy was associated with acceptance, independent of the influence of bias. Sex... Show moreThis study examined social information processing theory's predictions that the accuracy of children's perceptions is associated with their peer acceptance. Specifically, it evaluated concurrent and prospective associations between the accuracy of children's perceptions and their peer acceptance, assessed by sociometric status and by positive and negative peer nominations. In addition, this study evaluated if accuracy was associated with acceptance, independent of the influence of bias. Sex and aggression were evaluated as potential moderators of these relationships. In addition, this study examined possible differences in accuracy for rejected-aggressive subtypes of children. Peer nomination and peer rating data were collected from a sample of 663 third through fifth grade children, 389 of whom were classified as popular, average, or rejected sociometric status. Hierarchical regression analyses and analyses of variance were conducted. Results provided some support for social information processing theory, as inaccurate perceptions were concurrently associated with less peer liking. Level of aggression moderated this relationship. In addition, inaccurate perceptions were associated with more peer disliking for girls, but not for boys. These results remained significant when controlling for bias, suggesting that accuracy and bias are unique measures of off-target perceptions. Accuracy did not predict changes in acceptance over the course of one academic year. When rejected-aggressive subtypes were evaluated separately, rejected-aggressive girls were more inaccurate than their peers, but there were no group differences for boys. With the inclusion of bias, group differences became nonsignificant, suggesting that bias differentiated rejected-aggressive girls from their peers. Show less

The present investigation sought to examine and replicate previously observed patterns of both normal progressive and regressive saccades, as well as to further understand regression behavior by using a new experimental paradigm for experimentation and to compare previously unstudied characteristics of regressive eye-movements with those of normal progressive reading. A spatial memory component was also included in the main experiment to determine if those with better visuo-spatial working... Show moreThe present investigation sought to examine and replicate previously observed patterns of both normal progressive and regressive saccades, as well as to further understand regression behavior by using a new experimental paradigm for experimentation and to compare previously unstudied characteristics of regressive eye-movements with those of normal progressive reading. A spatial memory component was also included in the main experiment to determine if those with better visuo-spatial working memory are able to make more regressions. The sample studied did exhibit normal progressive reading, and it was found that the saccade-distance effect for progressive saccades was absent for regressive saccades. Readers also seemed to exhibit two different regression strategies for locating previously fixated text. These two strategies seemed to rely on different cognitive processes, meaning that task type and information available for saccade programming may have an effect on the accuracy of a reader's regressive saccades. Those readers with higher spatial memory made more accurate regressions with fewer total number of regressions to find the target. Show less

Prediction of kindergarten and preschool children's alphabetic knowledge was examined with respect to child characteristics (e.g., age, SES, emergent literacy skills), letter properties (e.g., alphabetic order, letter name structure, sound properties), and child x letter factors (e.g., letters used to spell a certain child's name). A single, multilevel model including all types of factors was created, allowing for between-item, between-subject, and subject x item analyses. All zero-order and... Show morePrediction of kindergarten and preschool children's alphabetic knowledge was examined with respect to child characteristics (e.g., age, SES, emergent literacy skills), letter properties (e.g., alphabetic order, letter name structure, sound properties), and child x letter factors (e.g., letters used to spell a certain child's name). A single, multilevel model including all types of factors was created, allowing for between-item, between-subject, and subject x item analyses. All zero-order and unique predictors of children's letter name and letter-sound knowledge were identified. Factors of each type were reliably predictive of outcomes, although most of the model variance was attributed to differences among children. Implications of using the new modeling technique as well as practical application for early childhood classrooms are discussed. Show less

Activity-based anorexia (ABA) in an animal model of anorexia nervosa, in which rats are allowed free access to running wheels but only 2 h food access per day. Rats exposed to this paradigm display symptoms similar to those seen in anorexic women. These include decreased food intake, increased activity, rapid body weight loss, and estrous cycle disruptions. Despite that anorexia nervosa is more frequent in women than in men, ABA has been studied almost exclusively in male rats. In Experiment... Show moreActivity-based anorexia (ABA) in an animal model of anorexia nervosa, in which rats are allowed free access to running wheels but only 2 h food access per day. Rats exposed to this paradigm display symptoms similar to those seen in anorexic women. These include decreased food intake, increased activity, rapid body weight loss, and estrous cycle disruptions. Despite that anorexia nervosa is more frequent in women than in men, ABA has been studied almost exclusively in male rats. In Experiment 1, development of, and recovery from, ABA was characterized in female rats with and without access to running wheels. Food intake, wheel running, body weight and phase of the estrous cycle were monitored daily prior to, during, and after a period of restricted feeding in which access to food was limited to 2 h/day. This study confirmed that access to wheels is necessary for the development of ABA in female rats, and that pre-adaptation to the wheels may accelerate the weight loss associated with ABA. Following food restriction, recovery of body weight was closely associated with resumption of estrous cycles. Despite pronounced hyperphagia during the recovery phase, rats displayed estrous-related decreases in food intake. These findings suggest that satiogenic signals that decrease food intake during estrus override the orexigenic signals that stimulate appetite following weight loss. Studies in humans suggest that the serotonergic system is involved in the etiology of anorexia nervosa. In Experiment 2, the effects of fenfluramine, a serotonin agonist, on the development of ABA was examined in female rats. Food intake, wheel running, body weight and phase of the estrous cycle were monitored daily prior to, during, and after a period of restricted feeding in which access to food was limited to 2 h/day. During the restricted feeding period, rats were i.p. injected with 0.50 mg/kg fenfluramine or saline daily. In addition, development of ABA in a saline-injected group that was pair-fed to the fenfluramine-injected group was examined. Fenfluramine treatment increased the development of ABA; rats treated with fenfluramine lost weight more rapidly, and displayed greater disruptions in estrous cyclicity, than control rats. Interestingly, a reduction in food intake, similar to that observed in fenfluramine-treated rats, failed to increase the development of ABA in pair-fed rats. This finding suggests that elevated serotonergic activity, rather than a suppression of food intake, is the critical factor that increased the development of ABA in this experiment. The mechanism underlying this effect is unknown; however, it is possible that the serotonergic system interacts with other systems involved in the control of food intake, such as neuropeptide Y(NPY), to increase susceptibility to ABA. Further research is necessary to determine how hypothalamic NPY concentration changes in response to fenfluramine treatment in rats with ABA. Show less

Activity-based anorexia (ABA), an animal model of anorexia nervosa in which rats are given free access to running wheels but restricted access to food, induces many symptoms of anorexia nervosa. This model has been used to examine biological factors that may contribute to the development of anorexia nervosa. Here, the role of the serotonin (5-HT) system in the development of ABA was examined in female rats. In Experiment 1, susceptibility to ABA was examined in rats treated with 8-OH-DPAT, a... Show moreActivity-based anorexia (ABA), an animal model of anorexia nervosa in which rats are given free access to running wheels but restricted access to food, induces many symptoms of anorexia nervosa. This model has been used to examine biological factors that may contribute to the development of anorexia nervosa. Here, the role of the serotonin (5-HT) system in the development of ABA was examined in female rats. In Experiment 1, susceptibility to ABA was examined in rats treated with 8-OH-DPAT, a drug that reduces 5-HT neurotransmission. In this and subsequent experiments, rats had free access to running wheels, and food was restricted to 2 h/ day. Daily treatment with 8-OH-DPAT decreased wheel running and weight loss, suggesting that decreased 5-HT activity reduces susceptibility to ABA. In Experiment 2 we determined whether antagonism of the 5-HT2C receptor decreased susceptibility to ABA. Rats were subjected to the ABA paradigm as in Experiment 1 and treated daily with RS-102221, a selective 5-HT2C receptor antagonist. RS-102221 did not affect food intake or wheel running. However, RS-102221 treatment slowed weight loss, suggesting that antagonism of the 5-HT2C receptor decreases susceptibility to ABA. Because RS-102221 did not affect food intake and wheel running, some other mechanism, such as a change in thermoregulation, must mediate these results. In Experiment 3, neuronal activation in response to fenfluramine, a 5-HT agonist, was examined in rats with ABA. Rats were allowed to lose 0, 10, or 25% of their baseline body weight in the ABA paradigm. After reaching the weight loss criterion, rats were injected with fenfluramine or saline vehicle. Two h later, rats were perfused and brains were collected and processed for c-Fos-like immunoreactivity. Weight loss interacted with fenfluramine treatment to increase c-Fos expression in the nucleus of the solitary tract. Weight loss alone increased c-Fos expression in the arcuate nucleus, and fenfluramine treatment alone increased c-Fos expression in the central nucleus of the amygdala. This suggests that brain regions important in the control of energy balance are affected by exposure to the ABA paradigm. Taken together, these data suggest that 5-HT plays an important role in the development of ABA. Show less

The current study examined the contribution of multiple well-established risk variables to the prediction of institutional maladjustment and recidivism. The incremental validity of individual risk variables was assessed and actuarial models were developed with the intent of maximizing risk prediction. A total sample of 489 severe male juvenile offenders was divided into separate derivation and validation sub-samples for the development of actuarial models. In partial support of study... Show moreThe current study examined the contribution of multiple well-established risk variables to the prediction of institutional maladjustment and recidivism. The incremental validity of individual risk variables was assessed and actuarial models were developed with the intent of maximizing risk prediction. A total sample of 489 severe male juvenile offenders was divided into separate derivation and validation sub-samples for the development of actuarial models. In partial support of study hypotheses, regression analyses revealed that multiple criminal history variables (e.g., age of first adjudication, prior commitments) uniquely contributed to the prediction of institutional maladjustment and recidivism. The actuarial models performed similarly across derivation and validation samples. However, with the exception of institutional maladjustment, the actuarial models exhibited low prediction accuracy (e.g., AUC = .59 - .64). Cut-scores derived for the models were particularly prone to false positives. Implications of the current findings for juvenile risk assessment and future actuarial modeling efforts are discussed. Show less

Date Issued

2008

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-2416

Format

Thesis

Title

The Acute Effects of Ketamine on Social Interaction after Chronic Defeat.

Creator

Torres, Pedro, Department of Psychology

Abstract/Description

Depression is a debilitating disorder with established prevalence and detrimental impact on the economy. Ketamine is a fast acting and long lasting treatment for depression, including treatment resistant patients. The mechanism(s) behind ketamine's effects is unknown. Thus, this study assessed the effects of acute ketamine treatment on a new chronic stress paradigm using C57BL/6J and CD1 aggressor adult male mice. The C57BL/6J mice were assigned to three groups: emotional stress (ES),... Show moreDepression is a debilitating disorder with established prevalence and detrimental impact on the economy. Ketamine is a fast acting and long lasting treatment for depression, including treatment resistant patients. The mechanism(s) behind ketamine's effects is unknown. Thus, this study assessed the effects of acute ketamine treatment on a new chronic stress paradigm using C57BL/6J and CD1 aggressor adult male mice. The C57BL/6J mice were assigned to three groups: emotional stress (ES), physical stress (PS), and control (CON) conditions. The mice in the PS condition received social defeats, while the ES mice witnessed the defeats, for 10 consecutive days, 10 minutes each day. Twenty-four hours after the last stress session, the mice were injected with either saline or ketamine (0.20 mg/kg) one hour before a social interactions test was conducted to assess whether ketamine could rescue deficits in interaction elicited by chronic stress. Mice in the PS condition showed significantly reduced interaction time when the target was present, whereas the ES-exposed mice displayed only similar trend, regardless of drug treatment. Time spent in corners varied as a function of stress exposure but not drug treatment, with the ES- and PS-exposed mice spending significantly more time in the corners when the target was present. With the exception of the ketamine-treated controls, mice receiving saline displayed reduced interaction times when compared to a group of non-injected controls regardless of stress condition. These finding suggest that ketamine was unable to alleviate the stress-induced deficits in social interaction, however, acute ketamine may be beneficial in alleviating the effects of acute stress. Show less

Date Issued

2013

Identifier

FSU_migr_uhm-0172

Format

Thesis

Title

Acute Overarousal and the Acquired Capability for Suicide: Understanding Acute Suicide Risk Through the Lens of the Interpersonal Theory of Suicide.

Converging evidence suggests that acute states of overarousal (namely, agitation, insomnia, and nightmares) are commonly observed prior to near-lethal or lethal suicidal behavior. Yet, there has been very little research evaluating theory-driven explanations of these phenomena. The intention of the proposed project was to address this gap in the literature by drawing from and extending the tenets of the interpersonal theory of suicide (Joiner, 2005; Van Orden et al., 2010), which suggests... Show moreConverging evidence suggests that acute states of overarousal (namely, agitation, insomnia, and nightmares) are commonly observed prior to near-lethal or lethal suicidal behavior. Yet, there has been very little research evaluating theory-driven explanations of these phenomena. The intention of the proposed project was to address this gap in the literature by drawing from and extending the tenets of the interpersonal theory of suicide (Joiner, 2005; Van Orden et al., 2010), which suggests that most individuals will be discouraged from engaging in suicidal behavior because of its fearsome nature. For most individuals, the prospect of engaging in potentially lethal suicidal behavior will elicit some degree of arousal. We expected that the effect of arousal would be particularly relevant, however, when considered in the context of the acquired capability for suicide. A total of 191 participants were randomized to an arousal induction (500-mg caffeine) or placebo control condition. All participants then engaged in a behavioral approach task designed as a proxy for suicidal behavior, which involves assessing approach motivation toward a potential lethal stimulus. Main analyses examined the independent and joint effects of acquired capability and arousal on approach motivation. Secondary analyses considered whether the effects would be better understood in the context of factors thought to contribute to suicidal desire. The influence of depressive symptoms on the relationship between arousal and suicidal behavior as well as the effects of arousal on pain tolerance were also examined within exploratory analyses. Results were partially in line with expectations. Findings are considered within the context of the broader literature, providing insight on directions for future research further elaborating our understanding of the nature of the relationship between overarousal and suicidal behavior. Show less

Date Issued

2014

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-9075

Format

Thesis

Title

Acute Stress and Self-Control: The Effect of Threat and Challenge Appraisals of Acute Stress on Subsequent Acts of Self-Regulation.

Several studies demonstrate a consistent, positive relationship between cognitive ability measures and normatively superior judgment and decision behavior. However, little is known about the cognitive processes and mechanisms that give rise to these individual differences or more generally produce rational judgments under uncertainty. In a series of two experiments, protocol analysis and individual difference measures were used to demonstrate that, in contrast to the processes predicted by a... Show moreSeveral studies demonstrate a consistent, positive relationship between cognitive ability measures and normatively superior judgment and decision behavior. However, little is known about the cognitive processes and mechanisms that give rise to these individual differences or more generally produce rational judgments under uncertainty. In a series of two experiments, protocol analysis and individual difference measures were used to demonstrate that, in contrast to the processes predicted by a rational theory (i.e. expected value calculations), rational choices often arise from combinations of simple considerations. These processes are similar to those predicted by the priority heuristic, although the priority heuristic generally predicted choices poorly, at or below chance levels. Critically, individual differences in elaborative adaptive strategies (e.g. more and more varied combinations of simple considerations) were strongly positively related to rational choices and fully mediated the cognitive ability and rational choice relationship. Implications for descriptive and process level models of choice are discussed. Show less

Intimates regularly attempt to motivate their partners to change their undesirable behaviors by engaging in confrontational partner-regulation behaviors. Although recent research suggests that such behaviors can indeed motivate partners to change on average, theoretical perspectives suggest that such behaviors may decrease the motivation of partners who are experiencing depression. A survey study of romantic relationships, an observational study of newlyweds, and a diary study of married... Show moreIntimates regularly attempt to motivate their partners to change their undesirable behaviors by engaging in confrontational partner-regulation behaviors. Although recent research suggests that such behaviors can indeed motivate partners to change on average, theoretical perspectives suggest that such behaviors may decrease the motivation of partners who are experiencing depression. A survey study of romantic relationships, an observational study of newlyweds, and a diary study of married couples provided support for this prediction. Across all three studies, confrontational partner-regulation behaviors were associated with more motivation to resolve problems among partners who were experiencing relatively few depressive symptoms, but less motivation among partners who were experiencing relatively more depressive symptoms. Further, Study 3 provided evidence for the mechanism of these effects-- relationship self-efficacy, or the belief that one can resolve relationship problems. Finally, the three studies additionally provided evidence that engaging in supportive and encouraging behaviors during problem-solving discussions was particularly motivating to partners who were experiencing more depressive symptoms. These findings highlight the fact that theories of communication will be most complete to the extent that they consider that interpersonal behaviors are not inherently beneficial or harmful; rather, their implications depend on qualities of the communication target. Show less

Date Issued

2014

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-8938

Format

Thesis

Title

ADHD and working memory: the impact of central executive deficits and exceeding storage/rehearsal capacity on observed inattentive behavior.

Inattentive behavior is considered a core and pervasive feature of ADHD; however, an alternative model challenges this premise and hypothesizes a functional relationship between working memory deficits and inattentive behavior. The current study investigated whether inattentive behavior in children with ADHD is functionally related to the domain-general central executive and/or subsidiary storage/rehearsal components of working memory. Objective observations of children's attentive behavior... Show moreInattentive behavior is considered a core and pervasive feature of ADHD; however, an alternative model challenges this premise and hypothesizes a functional relationship between working memory deficits and inattentive behavior. The current study investigated whether inattentive behavior in children with ADHD is functionally related to the domain-general central executive and/or subsidiary storage/rehearsal components of working memory. Objective observations of children's attentive behavior by independent observers were conducted while children with ADHD (n = 15) and typically developing children (n = 14) completed counterbalanced tasks that differentially manipulated central executive, phonological storage/rehearsal, and visuospatial storage/rehearsal demands. Results of latent variable and effect size confidence interval analyses revealed two conditions that completely accounted for the attentive behavior deficits in children with ADHD: (a) placing demands on central executive processing, the effect of which is evident under even low cognitive loads, and (b) exceeding storage/rehearsal capacity, which has similar effects on children with ADHD and typically developing children but occurs at lower cognitive loads for children with ADHD. Show less

Date Issued

2010

Identifier

FSU_migr_psy_faculty_publications-0017, 10.1007/s10802-009-9357-6

Format

Citation

Title

Adjustment to Parkinson's Disease: The Role of Coping, Control, and Goal Orientation.

The present study investigates a possible causal model for the prediction of subjective well-being in Parkinson's disease (PD). The primary hypothesis proposed that, controlling for disease severity, validation-seeking attitudes among individuals with PD would predict less use of secondary control coping strategies, more relinquishing of control in the face of PD symptoms, lower psychosocial adjustment to PD, and lower subjective well-being. I also proposed that validation-seeking would... Show moreThe present study investigates a possible causal model for the prediction of subjective well-being in Parkinson's disease (PD). The primary hypothesis proposed that, controlling for disease severity, validation-seeking attitudes among individuals with PD would predict less use of secondary control coping strategies, more relinquishing of control in the face of PD symptoms, lower psychosocial adjustment to PD, and lower subjective well-being. I also proposed that validation-seeking would indirectly contribute to lower adjustment to PD through the type of coping strategies used, as well as indirectly affect subjective well-being through both coping strategies and adjustment to PD (operationalized as fewer restrictions to work and social participation). First, the concept of relinquished control could not be investigated due to validity issues with the measure or the construct, so the results were limited to only secondary control coping efforts. Consistent with the hypotheses, validation-seeking attitudes did predict lower positive subjective well-being and better adjustment to PD predicted better overall subjective well-being (i.e., lower depressive symptoms and enhanced positive subjective well-being), controlling for all other variables. However, hypotheses regarding relationships between secondary control coping strategies and validation-seeking, adjustment to PD, and subjective well-being were not supported. Furthermore, exploratory analyses of these relationships suggested that, contrary to the hypothesis that secondary control coping would predict positive outcomes, the use of secondary control coping strategies predicted higher depressive symptoms and poorer adjustment to PD. Closer investigation of the secondary control coping measure suggests that individuals may not have distinguished between voluntary use of secondary control coping strategies and restrictions in activities that had to be made due to PD, especially when reporting changes in what they were doing as a result of PD. Show less

Date Issued

2008

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0093

Format

Thesis

Title

Adolescent Psychopathology Scale as a Screener for Incoming Juveniles within Residential Facilities.

The study examined the utility of the Adolescent Psychopathology Scale - Short Form (APS-SF) as a screening instrument for assessment of the mental health needs of incoming juveniles within a Department of Juvenile Justice residential facility. The APS-SF was compared to a well-validated, semi-structured diagnostic interview, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Childhood Diagnoses (KID-SCID), within a sample of 50 male juvenile offenders, 14 to 19 years of age. Overall, the findings... Show moreThe study examined the utility of the Adolescent Psychopathology Scale - Short Form (APS-SF) as a screening instrument for assessment of the mental health needs of incoming juveniles within a Department of Juvenile Justice residential facility. The APS-SF was compared to a well-validated, semi-structured diagnostic interview, the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV Childhood Diagnoses (KID-SCID), within a sample of 50 male juvenile offenders, 14 to 19 years of age. Overall, the findings offer modest support for the use of the APS-SF as a screener for mental health problems within juvenile justice settings. Show less

Date Issued

2009

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0667

Format

Thesis

Title

Adult Neurogenesis in the Limbic System of the Monogamous Prairie Vole: Regulation by the Social Environment.

In this Dissertation, the effects of various social stimuli on adult neurogenesis--the formation and functional integration of adult-generated neurons into the existing neuronal circuitry--were investigated in the socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster). As reviewed in Chapter 1, several intrinsic (e.g., hormones and neurotransmitters) and extrinsic (e.g., environmental enrichment and physical exercise) factors have been shown to alter adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus... Show moreIn this Dissertation, the effects of various social stimuli on adult neurogenesis--the formation and functional integration of adult-generated neurons into the existing neuronal circuitry--were investigated in the socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster). As reviewed in Chapter 1, several intrinsic (e.g., hormones and neurotransmitters) and extrinsic (e.g., environmental enrichment and physical exercise) factors have been shown to alter adult neurogenesis in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus and the main olfactory bulb/subventricular zone (MOB/SVZ) system as well as other non-traditional neurogenic brain regions (including the amygdala, medial preoptic area, and ventromedial hypothalamus). Researchers have begun to examine the effects of various social environmental factors on distinct stages of adult neurogenesis (including cell proliferation, cell survival, and neuronal differentiation) in the dentate gyrus and MOB/SVZ system. However, the effects of social stimuli on adult neurogenesis particularly in non-traditional neurogenic brain regions remain understudied. This is likely due to the lack of an appropriate animal model; as the animal species commonly used to study adult neurogenesis (e.g., rats and mice) do not display stable, long-term social interactions. Therefore, in this Chapter, we introduced the socially monogamous prairie vole as a suitable animal model to study the effects of various social stimuli on adult neurogenesis in non-traditional neurogenic brain regions. In Chapter 2, we showed that long-term social isolation, a stressful stimulus, significantly reduced cell proliferation, cell survival, neuronal differentiation, and cell death in the amygdala and dentate gyrus of the female prairie vole. In addition, long-term social isolation increased anxiety-like, depression-like, and affiliative behaviors--possibly suggesting that alterations in adult neurogenesis may underlie the observed behavioral changes. In Chapter 3, we examined the effects of long-term social isolation and fatherhood on cell proliferation and cell survival in male prairie voles. We demonstrated that fatherhood, but not social isolation, down-regulated cell survival, without altering cell proliferation, in a brain region specific manner. In Chapter 4, we investigated the effects of acute and chronic pup exposure on cell proliferation and cell survival in male prairie voles. The data showed that neither acute nor chronic pup exposure altered neuronal plasticity in the amygdala, dentate gyrus, and ventromedial hypothalamus. In Chapter 5, we showed that fatherhood in prairie voles increased anxiety- and depression-like behaviors and reduced the high level of mating-induced aggression. Finally, in Chapter 6, we discussed the observed effects of various social stimuli on neuronal plasticity and their implications as well as suggested directions for future research. Show less

Date Issued

2013

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-7469

Format

Thesis

Title

Affective and Behavioral Dysregulation: An Analysis of Individual Difference Variables in the Acquired Capability for Suicide.

Suicide claims the lives of approximately 32,000 Americans each year. The interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS; Joiner, 2005) was developed in an effort to clarify the nature of suicidality as well as to enhance risk assessment and prevention approaches. The IPTS differentiates between the desire for death by suicide and the capability for suicide, which is said to be acquired through repeated exposure to painful and provocative life events. Thus far, the relationship between... Show moreSuicide claims the lives of approximately 32,000 Americans each year. The interpersonal-psychological theory of suicide (IPTS; Joiner, 2005) was developed in an effort to clarify the nature of suicidality as well as to enhance risk assessment and prevention approaches. The IPTS differentiates between the desire for death by suicide and the capability for suicide, which is said to be acquired through repeated exposure to painful and provocative life events. Thus far, the relationship between painful and provocative events and the acquired capability for suicide has been repeatedly supported in independent samples (e.g., Van Orden et al.,2008; Bryan et al., 2010). To date, however, no research has investigated whether the path from pain and provocation to the acquired capability is uniform across populations. I sought to test whether individuals' experiences with negative affect might moderate this relationship, with individuals exhibiting greater difficulty managing emotional distress who report greater levels of lifetime pain and provocation demonstrating the highest levels of the acquired capability. Specifically, I examined negative urgency and distress tolerance as moderators. Results utilizing structural equation modeling indicated that the proposed models were not an adequate fit for the data; however, a post hoc series of hierarchical linear regressions revealed a number of significant interactions between emotion-based individual difference variables (negative urgency, distress tolerance) and pain and provocation in the prediction of the acquired capability for suicide. These significant interactions were not in the hypothesized direction, as greater levels of negative urgency and lower levels of distress tolerance dampened the relationship between painful and provocative events and the acquired capability for suicide. These results might indicate that, although emotionally dysregulated individuals exhibit a higher rate of death by suicide (e.g., Linehan, 1993), this is true despite their emotion dysregulation, not because of it. Experiencing discomfort as highly aversive may actually serve as a buffer against suicide and require that such individuals experience greater exposure to pain and provocation in order to habituate sufficiently to such stimuli. Show less

Date Issued

2011

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0218

Format

Thesis

Title

Affective Processing by the Late Positive Potential (LPP) and P3 Across Directed and Incidental Picture-Viewing Tasks: A Time-Frequency Approach.

A number of studies have evaluated affective processing via the late positive potential (LPP), an event-related potential (ERP) measure that shows enhancement in response to affective relative to neutral pictures (cf. Cuthbert, Schupp, Bradley, Birbaumer, & Lang, 2000). More recent work based on the LPP has begun to investigate how automatic and other post-perceptual (e.g., evaluative and regulatory) processes influence the affectively modulated LPP. Although evidence exists supporting the... Show moreA number of studies have evaluated affective processing via the late positive potential (LPP), an event-related potential (ERP) measure that shows enhancement in response to affective relative to neutral pictures (cf. Cuthbert, Schupp, Bradley, Birbaumer, & Lang, 2000). More recent work based on the LPP has begun to investigate how automatic and other post-perceptual (e.g., evaluative and regulatory) processes influence the affectively modulated LPP. Although evidence exists supporting the idea that the LPP is influenced by both automatic and other types of processing, the experimental conditions used to study the LPP have not been adequate to effectively parse these components (typical long stimulus delivery times leaving room for numerous post-perceptual processes to occur during the LPP). In the current study, the LPP was evaluated in a new (Incidental Picture-Viewing, IPV) task where affective pictures were presented briefly and unexpectedly in the context of a common oddball task, with the goal of better isolating automatic components of the LPP. A comparison (Directed Picture-Viewing, DPV) task was also included that presented affective pictures as is typical in LPP work (presenting stimuli for longer durations, and as the primary focus of attention). In addition to evaluating the LPP in these two tasks, we sought to further assess the earlier P3 component, which overlaps with LPP and has also been shown to be modulated by affective stimuli. Specifically, time-frequency (TF) signal representations, characterized with principal components analysis (PCA), were used to parse overlapping components that contribute to overall time-domain P3 and LPP in each task. Results indicated that affect-neutral differences were elicited in the LPP and P3 components in both tasks, and that similar slow-wave affective processes contributed to those affect-neutral differences. In contrast to the LPP, however, which was dominated solely by slow-wave affective differences, P3 contained an amalgam of slow-wave and higher frequency (delta and theta) affective processes. Further, although slow-wave affect-neutral differences were significantly larger in the DPV task, this affective slow-wave component was correlated modestly between tasks, supporting the view that it indexed, in part, a common affective process across tasks. Findings suggest that the LPP was robust against this strong attention manipulation and provide important insights about the nature of the affective processing observed in the LPP and P3. Show less

Antisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) represents a heterogeneous diagnostic classification as individuals with this disorder can vary considerably in their symptom presentation. Research examining underlying risk factors for antisocial behavior could aid in understanding its manifestation and foster hypotheses regarding potential intervention strategies. The current study tested the hypothesis that, among antisocial incarcerated individuals, affective psychopathic traits mediate the... Show moreAntisocial Personality Disorder (ASPD) represents a heterogeneous diagnostic classification as individuals with this disorder can vary considerably in their symptom presentation. Research examining underlying risk factors for antisocial behavior could aid in understanding its manifestation and foster hypotheses regarding potential intervention strategies. The current study tested the hypothesis that, among antisocial incarcerated individuals, affective psychopathic traits mediate the relationship between low cortisol reactivity and proactive aggression, and impulsivity mediates the relationship between high cortisol reactivity and reactive aggression. A sample of 49 young adult male offenders aged 18 and older were recruited to complete a performance-based stressor task as well as interviews and self-report measures assessing psychopathy, aggression, and impulsivity. Salivary hormone samples were taken just prior to the Trier Social Stress Test (baseline) and at 20 min post-stressor. Ultimately, results did not support the hypotheses, suggesting that cortisol reactivity alone lacks specificity in prediction of psychopathic traits, impulsivity, and aggression. Given that previous research has demonstrated Factor 1 psychopathic traits are significantly predictive of blunted cortisol reactivity to the TSST in college students, exploratory analyses tested whether this finding could be replicated in a severely antisocial incarcerated sample. Results indicated that affective psychopathic traits in particular predicted significant cortisol decline in response to the stressor. Results of this project highlight the directionality of the relationship between psychopathic traits and cortisol reactivity, suggesting that blunted or declining cortisol reactivity may be a symptom of psychopathic traits, not a causal factor. Show less

Recent experiments in embodied social cognition have documented a number of links between physical and psychological states. Warm temperature sensations, in particular, have been the subject of much investigation. Many studies have revealed links between warm temperatures and social affiliative processes, such that experiencing warm temperatures often activates affiliative cognitions and motivations. However, some studies also suggest that experiencing warm temperatures (or heat) can result... Show moreRecent experiments in embodied social cognition have documented a number of links between physical and psychological states. Warm temperature sensations, in particular, have been the subject of much investigation. Many studies have revealed links between warm temperatures and social affiliative processes, such that experiencing warm temperatures often activates affiliative cognitions and motivations. However, some studies also suggest that experiencing warm temperatures (or heat) can result in aggressive, antisocial responses. My own previous research includes evidence that warm temperature primes can elicit both affiliative and hostile social responses under different circumstances, although it is worth noting that those effects were demonstrated in different studies. The literature currently lacks a coherent account of why similar sensory experiences can motivate such divergent social cognitions and behaviors. The current work was designed to test whether divergent responses to warm temperatures can be explained by variations in the perceivers' social motives, and to test whether this divergence is mediated by variations in the extent to which warmth motivates attention to hostile versus affiliative social cues. Show less

Date Issued

2014

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-8778

Format

Thesis

Title

African American and White Students' Reactions to Viewing a News Report of a Hate Crime.

"Hate crimes" are thought to result in greater psychological and emotional harm to the victim and to other members of the targeted group than to others. Students, 46 African Americans and 52 Whites, viewed a one-minute videotaped news report about a murder, described as a hate crime or an "ordinary" murder. As predicted, those who saw the hate crime video exhibited greater state anger. African Americans showed more anger after viewing the hate crime video than the other video. Whites showed... Show more"Hate crimes" are thought to result in greater psychological and emotional harm to the victim and to other members of the targeted group than to others. Students, 46 African Americans and 52 Whites, viewed a one-minute videotaped news report about a murder, described as a hate crime or an "ordinary" murder. As predicted, those who saw the hate crime video exhibited greater state anger. African Americans showed more anger after viewing the hate crime video than the other video. Whites showed similar anger after viewing the two video types. Predicted state self-esteem effects did not occur. Predicted racial identity relations were not significant. Show less

Research examining age differences in metamemory has consistently found that the ability to monitor one's memory remains relatively intact as we age. Recently, researchers have been striving to understand the relationship between monitoring and control during encoding and retrieval in an effort to find ways of increasing the efficiency of learning. The current study explores the impact of monitoring on performance for both younger and older adults in an everyday technology-driven task.... Show moreResearch examining age differences in metamemory has consistently found that the ability to monitor one's memory remains relatively intact as we age. Recently, researchers have been striving to understand the relationship between monitoring and control during encoding and retrieval in an effort to find ways of increasing the efficiency of learning. The current study explores the impact of monitoring on performance for both younger and older adults in an everyday technology-driven task. Participants learned 20 tasks in Quicken and made judgments of learning (JOLs) about their ability to recall a 3-4 step task on a test immediately following training. The timing (immediate vs. delayed) and inclusion of the JOL into the training session varied across the 3 conditions. Results suggest that the incorporation of JOLs into the training of these tasks improved recall performance for both younger and older adults. Timing of the JOL cue did not impact monitoring accuracy in younger adults, but delayed JOLs improved monitoring accuracy in older adults. Show less

Date Issued

2010

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0847

Format

Thesis

Title

Age-Related Changes in Information Processing on Tasks of Perceptual Speed.

The general slowing theory of cognitive aging claims that age-related decline in cognitive performance results from the global slowing of processing functions. This theory derives from evidence showing how tests of perceptual speed account for virtually all the age-related variance in many tasks. However, these tasks may reflect more than individual differences in general speediness, such as different strategies resulting from the different possible ways of understanding the task,... Show moreThe general slowing theory of cognitive aging claims that age-related decline in cognitive performance results from the global slowing of processing functions. This theory derives from evidence showing how tests of perceptual speed account for virtually all the age-related variance in many tasks. However, these tasks may reflect more than individual differences in general speediness, such as different strategies resulting from the different possible ways of understanding the task, differential memory abilities, or a speed-accuracy trade-off. Using verbal protocol analysis and eye tracking, different models for common tests of perceptual speed were evaluated. Participants completed the number comparison, digit-symbol, and backward digit span tasks in either a "think-aloud" or a silent control condition. In both conditions, participants' eye movements were recorded for number comparison and digit-symbol, and each participant was given one of three types of instructions for these two tests, one focusing the participant on speed, accuracy, or both. Overall, results show that the number of fixations during encoding potentially mediates age-related decline on these tasks, whereas other variables, such as fixation duration and switches between interest regions, did not correlate with age. The results have implications for theories of aging, as only one model, based on encoding delay, fully accounted for the observed results. Show less

The current study examined the neuropsychological correlates of memory accuracy in older and younger adults. Participants were tested in a memory monitoring paradigm developed by Koriat and Goldsmith (1996), which permits separate assessments of the accuracy of responses generated during retrieval and the accuracy of monitoring those responses. Participants were also administered a battery of tests designed to measure executive functioning and speed of processing. Results indicated that both... Show moreThe current study examined the neuropsychological correlates of memory accuracy in older and younger adults. Participants were tested in a memory monitoring paradigm developed by Koriat and Goldsmith (1996), which permits separate assessments of the accuracy of responses generated during retrieval and the accuracy of monitoring those responses. Participants were also administered a battery of tests designed to measure executive functioning and speed of processing. Results indicated that both age and executive measures were predictive of accuracy, while speed of processing measures accounted for little of the variability in accuracy. In addition, executive measures explained a moderate amount of the variability in monitoring. Mediational analyses demonstrated that a large portion of the effect of executive function measures on accuracy was mediated by memory monitoring. These data suggest that individual differences in executive function are important in memory accuracy. Show less

This study sought to replicate and extend previous research that used affective modulation of the eye-blink startle response (STR) to explore the emotional consequences of drinking. One of four levels of alcohol dose (including a no-alcohol control) was administered to each of 101 (48 female) young social drinkers to evaluate the extent to which increasing blood-alcohol level (BAL) differentially influences reaction to visual stimuli that vary in their emotional content. The results indicate... Show moreThis study sought to replicate and extend previous research that used affective modulation of the eye-blink startle response (STR) to explore the emotional consequences of drinking. One of four levels of alcohol dose (including a no-alcohol control) was administered to each of 101 (48 female) young social drinkers to evaluate the extent to which increasing blood-alcohol level (BAL) differentially influences reaction to visual stimuli that vary in their emotional content. The results indicate that increasing BAL was associated with a linear decrease in the overall STR reactivity. Alcohol intoxication did not significantly alter the stereotypic modulation of the affective valence dimension of emotional responding in the low BAL group (i.e. STR responding to pleasant images was attenuated and STR responding to unpleasant images was augmented in a similar fashion). However, it did have this effect in the moderate and high BAL groups, suggesting a possible threshold for the stress-response dampening effects of alcohol. STR, which is mediated by a neural circuit that involves input from subcortical regions of the nervous system, was contrasted with the concurrently measured postauricular reflex (PAR), which is mediated by a neural circuit that does not involve input from these areas, allowing for evaluation of the functional location of alcohol's effects on the arousal component of affective responding. The results indicate that while increasing BAL was associated with a decrease in overall STR magnitude, it was not associated with an overall decrease in PAR magnitude. This suggests the observed decrease in the arousal dimension of emotional responding is likely due to alcohol's effects on subcortical areas of the central nervous system (consonant with its effect on STR magnitude), rather than its effects on motor-output components of thenervous system (which would be associated with a decrease in PAR magnitude). Show less

The effect of alcohol on performance during single-feature and conjunctive-features visual search tasks was examined in 18 normal, young adult participants (nine women), using a counterbalanced, within-subjects design that examined performance under intoxicated (peak blood-alcohol concentration = 0.071 gms%) and sober (no-alcohol control) conditions. Behavioral responses, including reaction times and error rates for detection of targets were examined in the study's main analyses, as were... Show moreThe effect of alcohol on performance during single-feature and conjunctive-features visual search tasks was examined in 18 normal, young adult participants (nine women), using a counterbalanced, within-subjects design that examined performance under intoxicated (peak blood-alcohol concentration = 0.071 gms%) and sober (no-alcohol control) conditions. Behavioral responses, including reaction times and error rates for detection of targets were examined in the study's main analyses, as were patterns of eye-movement, including saccade velocity and amplitude, number and duration of fixations, inhibition of return, and functional field of view. The results of these analyses indicated that alcohol intoxication was not associated with increased reaction times or error rates on any searches. However, alcohol intoxication was associated with decreased numbers and increased durations of fixations on trials that involve searching for conjunctive-features targets or absent targets. Alcohol intoxication was also associated with decreased fixations on distracters during conjunctive-features searches and decreased re-fixations of search elements that they had previously visited. Finally, alcohol intoxication was associated with decreased amplitudes and velocities of saccades. In sum, these findings indicated that alcohol intoxication slowed the initiation of saccades and that this effect was most pronounced on conjunctive-features searches. The results also suggested that these delays appeared to allow participants to process more parafoveal information at each fixation than they would have when sober, thus producing more efficient processing despite reduced speed. This study provided little support for alcohol-related reductions in cognitive capacity or inhibitory control suggested by the attention allocation model (Josephs and Steele, 1990) and impaired control (Fillmore, 2003) theory, respectively, as key mechanisms underlying changes in visual search while intoxicated—at least not at the dose tested in the present study. However, there was evidence of a general slowing effect of alcohol intoxication on the initiation and velocity of eye movements, as well as alteration of their amplitudes, that appeared to enable individuals to perform visual search tasks without obvious impairment by gathering more information at each fixation and consequently reducing the number of unnecessary eye movements that they made. These results are largely consistent with those of other research that has used different oculomotor tasks to examine alcohol's effects on attention (e.g., Radach, et al., 2011). Together, this work suggests that alcohol might influence attention in visual search, not by impairing top-down, controlled processes that guide eye-movements, but rather by influencing the bottom-up, automatic processes that initiate them. Show less

Date Issued

2011

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0699

Format

Thesis

Title

Alone but Feeling No Pain: Effects of Social Exclusion on Physical Pain Tolerance and Pain Threshold, Affective Forecasting, and Interpersonal Empathy.

Prior findings of emotional numbness (rather than distress) among socially excluded persons led us to investigate whether exclusion causes a far-reaching insensitivity to both physical and emotional pain. Experiments 1-4 showed that receiving an ostensibly diagnostic forecast of a lonesome future life reduced sensitivity to physical pain, as indicated by both (higher) thresholds and tolerance. Exclusion also caused emotional insensitivity, as indicated by reductions in affective forecasting... Show morePrior findings of emotional numbness (rather than distress) among socially excluded persons led us to investigate whether exclusion causes a far-reaching insensitivity to both physical and emotional pain. Experiments 1-4 showed that receiving an ostensibly diagnostic forecast of a lonesome future life reduced sensitivity to physical pain, as indicated by both (higher) thresholds and tolerance. Exclusion also caused emotional insensitivity, as indicated by reductions in affective forecasting of joy or woe over a future football outcome (Experiment 3), as well as lesser empathizing with another person's suffering from either romantic breakup (Experiment 4) or a broken leg (Experiment 5). Mediation analyses confirmed the link between insensitivities to physical and emotional pain. Show less

Date Issued

2006

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0751

Format

Thesis

Title

Alone, Drunk and Feeling No Pain: The Effect of Thwarted Belongingness and Alcohol on Self Inflicted Pain Tolerance.

The present study examined some specific mechanisms that might underlie the connection between alcohol and suicide risk. According to the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide, individuals who experience thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness and an increased ability and willingness to tolerate physical pain are at an elevated risk for a lethal suicide attempt. We examined this theory while also investigating possible mechanisms by which alcohol intoxication might increase... Show moreThe present study examined some specific mechanisms that might underlie the connection between alcohol and suicide risk. According to the Interpersonal-Psychological Theory of Suicide, individuals who experience thwarted belongingness, perceived burdensomeness and an increased ability and willingness to tolerate physical pain are at an elevated risk for a lethal suicide attempt. We examined this theory while also investigating possible mechanisms by which alcohol intoxication might increase factors associated with suicide risk. Specifically, we examined a leading theory of alcohol's effect on emotion, which suggests that alcohol can actually increase distress in certain situations. This, combined with alcohol's analgesic properties and ability to increase fearlessness suggest that alcohol intoxication could dramatically increase the risk and lethality of suicide-related behaviors. In the present study, we manipulated beverage (alcohol versus no-alcohol) and personality feedback (thwarted belongingness versus misfortune control) and measured tolerance for self-inflicted pain via a cold pressor. As predicted, results demonstrate that individuals who had their sense of belongingness thwarted and subsequently consumed alcohol demonstrated significantly higher self-inflicted pain tolerance than those in other groups. Show less

Date Issued

2012

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-6044

Format

Thesis

Title

Altered Book-Making for Children and Adolescents Affected by Traumatic Loss.

This research study sought to test the effectiveness of using art therapy, specifically altered book-making, to decrease traumatic grief symptoms in children and adolescents. The study hypothesized that altered book-making with children and adolescents, who had experienced traumatic loss, would be effective in decreasing traumatic grief symptoms. The six-week/six-session treatment design used a single group pre/post-test, utilizing the UCLA PTSD-RI and an open-ended post-research survey. The... Show moreThis research study sought to test the effectiveness of using art therapy, specifically altered book-making, to decrease traumatic grief symptoms in children and adolescents. The study hypothesized that altered book-making with children and adolescents, who had experienced traumatic loss, would be effective in decreasing traumatic grief symptoms. The six-week/six-session treatment design used a single group pre/post-test, utilizing the UCLA PTSD-RI and an open-ended post-research survey. The population involved in the research were children and adolescents who had experienced the death of a family member through traumatic means, such as homicide or suicide, within the past five years. Four participants began the study, and three participant, completed both pre and post-test. The overall outcome of the study supported the researcher's hypothesis— participants reported increased understanding of grief responses, emotion identification, and self-reflection. Through altered book-making, participants also reported a decrease in anger, trauma symptoms and dissociation. Show less

Date Issued

2015

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-9618

Format

Thesis

Title

An Alternative to the Search for Single Polymorphisms: Toward Molecular Personality Scales for the Five-Factor Model.

There is growing evidence that personality traits are affected by many genes, all of which have very small effects. As an alternative to the largely unsuccessful search for individual polymorphisms associated with personality traits, the authors identified large sets of potentially related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and summed them to form molecular personality scales (MPSs) with from 4 to 2,497 SNPs. Scales were derived from two thirds of a large (N = 3,972) sample of individuals... Show moreThere is growing evidence that personality traits are affected by many genes, all of which have very small effects. As an alternative to the largely unsuccessful search for individual polymorphisms associated with personality traits, the authors identified large sets of potentially related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and summed them to form molecular personality scales (MPSs) with from 4 to 2,497 SNPs. Scales were derived from two thirds of a large (N = 3,972) sample of individuals from Sardinia who completed the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (P. T. Costa, Jr., & R. R. McCrae, 1992) and were assessed in a genomewide association scan. When MPSs were correlated with the phenotype in the remaining one third of the sample, very small but significant associations were found for 4 of the 5e personality factors when the longest scales were examined. These data suggest that MPSs for Neuroticism, Openness to Experience, Agreeableness, and Conscientiousness (but not Extraversion) contain genetic information that can be refined in future studies, and the procedures described here should be applicable to other quantitative traits. Show less

Anxiety sensitivity (AS) has become one of the most well researched risk factors for the development of psychopathology. Research has found that the AS subfactor of cognitive concerns may play an important role in PTSD, depression, and suicide. AS reduction protocols commonly use interoceptive exposure (IE), or exposure to bodily sensations, to reduce AS. However, current IE paradigms (e.g., CO2 inhalation, straw breathing, hyperventilation) primarily induce physical anxiety symptoms (e.g.,... Show moreAnxiety sensitivity (AS) has become one of the most well researched risk factors for the development of psychopathology. Research has found that the AS subfactor of cognitive concerns may play an important role in PTSD, depression, and suicide. AS reduction protocols commonly use interoceptive exposure (IE), or exposure to bodily sensations, to reduce AS. However, current IE paradigms (e.g., CO2 inhalation, straw breathing, hyperventilation) primarily induce physical anxiety symptoms (e.g., racing heart, dizziness), and thus might not be optimal for the reduction of AS cognitive concerns. Previous work has shown that fear reactivity during the induction of dissociative symptoms is uniquely associated with AS cognitive concerns, and therefore it is possible that repeated exposure to dissociative symptoms will result in habituation and decreased AS cognitive concerns. The current study investigated whether repeated exposure to the induction of dissociative symptoms would reduce AS cognitive concerns, and thus be viable as an IE component of treatments directly targeting AS cognitive concerns. Participants (N = 50) who scored at or above 1 SD above the mean on the ASI-3 cognitive subscale were randomly assigned to repeated exposure to dissociative symptoms through audio-visual stimulation or to a control condition (repeatedly listening to classical music). Results revealed that the classical music control condition resulted in significant decreases in AS cognitive concerns as compared the active dissociation exposure treatment. Unfortunately, these results do not support the viability of this exposure paradigm in the current format as a treatment for elevated AS cognitive concerns. Future directions include increasing the potency of the symptoms induced, increasing the number of exposures, and providing a stronger conceptual framework for the participants prior to undergoing the exposures. Show less

Date Issued

2016

Identifier

FSU_SUMMER2017_Norr_fsu_0071E_13096

Format

Thesis

Title

Amphetamine Impairs Pair Bonding in a Monogamous Rodent: The Involvement of Mesolimbic Dopamine and Oxytocin.

In this Dissertation, the effects of amphetamine (AMPH) exposure on pair bond formation in the socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) are characterized and the neural mechanisms that underlie these effects are investigated. As reviewed in Chapter 1, drug use and abuse have profound consequences on social behaviors, including pair bonding, in humans. Researchers have begun to use animal models to systematically examine the effects of drugs of abuse on a variety of social... Show moreIn this Dissertation, the effects of amphetamine (AMPH) exposure on pair bond formation in the socially monogamous prairie vole (Microtus ochrogaster) are characterized and the neural mechanisms that underlie these effects are investigated. As reviewed in Chapter 1, drug use and abuse have profound consequences on social behaviors, including pair bonding, in humans. Researchers have begun to use animal models to systematically examine the effects of drugs of abuse on a variety of social behaviors and have identified potential neural circuits that may be involved in these effects. However, the effects of drugs of abuse on pair bonding behavior have remained unstudied—perhaps due to the lack of an appropriate animal model. Therefore, in this Chapter, we also introduce the prairie vole as a candidate animal model for use in such studies and review the growing literature that has begun to elucidate the neurobiology of pair bonding. In Chapter 2, we establish the prairie vole as an animal model with which to study of the effects of drugs of abuse on pair bonding. We first investigate amphetamine (AMPH) reward in this species and then demonstrate that repeated exposure to AMPH impairs pair bond formation. In Chapter 3, we examine the neural mechanisms that underlie AMPH reward and the AMPH-induced impairment of pair bonding in male prairie voles. We demonstrate that the neurotransmitter dopamine (DA) acts in a receptor-specific manner in a mesolimbic brain region called the nucleus accumbens (NAcc) to mediate these behaviors. In Chapter 4, we examine the involvement of mesolimbic DA and the neuropeptide oxytocin (OT) in the effects of AMPH on pair bonding in the female prairie vole. We demonstrate that AMPH exposure alters OT and DA neurotransmission in mesolimbic brain regions and that these effects likely underlie the AMPH-induced impairment of pair bonding. Additionally, we demonstrate that site-specific treatment with OT into the prelimbic cortex restores partner preferences in AMPH-treated voles, and that this effect may be mediated through an interaction with NAcc DA. Finally, in Chapter 5, we discuss these findings and their implications in a general context and suggest future directions for related research. Show less

Research has firmly established that children of divorce tend to divorce at a higher rate than the general population. The mechanism driving the intergenerational transmission of divorce, however, has not been firmly established. The two most promising theories to be advanced by previous research are the "good enough marriage" hypothesis and the modeling of relationship skills hypothesis. The present study employs structural equations modeling to examine the viability of these hypotheses and... Show moreResearch has firmly established that children of divorce tend to divorce at a higher rate than the general population. The mechanism driving the intergenerational transmission of divorce, however, has not been firmly established. The two most promising theories to be advanced by previous research are the "good enough marriage" hypothesis and the modeling of relationship skills hypothesis. The present study employs structural equations modeling to examine the viability of these hypotheses and represents the first direct examination of the attitudinal portions of the "good enough marriage" hypothesis. In a sample of 225 young adults, evidence for an association was observed between perceptions of the parental marriage prior to divorce and both interpersonal tactics and prodivorce attitudes; however, the present study failed to document a reliable association between perceptions of the parental marriage prior to divorce and attitudes about commitment as predicted by the "good enough marriage" hypothesis. Show less

Date Issued

2007

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-3406

Format

Thesis

Title

Analysis of a Social Story Intervention to Increase Appropriate Social Interactions in Children with Autism.

More than ten years of research has been conducted on the use of social stories to change the behavior of children with autism, yet the results of these studies continue to be inconclusive. While many articles indicate that social stories do result in positive behavior change, these articles are fraught with errors or threats to internal validity. The most promising results to date indicate that social stories are most effective when combined with prompts and/or reinforcement. This study... Show moreMore than ten years of research has been conducted on the use of social stories to change the behavior of children with autism, yet the results of these studies continue to be inconclusive. While many articles indicate that social stories do result in positive behavior change, these articles are fraught with errors or threats to internal validity. The most promising results to date indicate that social stories are most effective when combined with prompts and/or reinforcement. This study sought to examine the impact of social stories on independent and prompted peer-directed social interactions while measuring frequencies of prompts and reinforcers available in the natural environment. These data were then compared to results obtained when prompts were combined with social stories or prompts were delivered without social stories, continuing to collect data on incidence of positive consequences. These data were evaluated using modified reversal designs with four participants who had all been diagnosed with autism. Three males and one female, with ages ranging from 10 to 21 years old, served as participants. Results indicate that increases over baseline in independent appropriate interactions were seen for all four participants, especially during the social story plus prompts condition and prompts only conditions. With only one exception, the social story alone (without prompts) did not result in increased social interaction. The greatest increases occurred when natural positive consequences were available at high rates. These data provide direction for future research on the use of social stories including incorporating prompts into the social story protocol and scheduling reinforcement for behaviors identified in the social story. Show less

Date Issued

2008

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-0900

Format

Thesis

Title

An analysis of an artistic conception.

Creator

Knobler, Lois Jean, Lewandowski, Edmund, Florida State University

Abstract/Description

It is impossible for me to discuss my paintings as something apart from my life. Painting is the only medium I have found through which I can synthesize my love of life, my criticism of it, my hopes, my humor and the truest realization of my world. It is, in fact, my whole way of life. Through paintings I can clarify my thoughts for, in essence, they are my thoughts and my feelings. Paintings do not simply intersperse my life as emotional outbursts. They are products of my life and its search... Show moreIt is impossible for me to discuss my paintings as something apart from my life. Painting is the only medium I have found through which I can synthesize my love of life, my criticism of it, my hopes, my humor and the truest realization of my world. It is, in fact, my whole way of life. Through paintings I can clarify my thoughts for, in essence, they are my thoughts and my feelings. Paintings do not simply intersperse my life as emotional outbursts. They are products of my life and its search for a place in the "scheme of things". That search starts with an awareness of a relation of all things in the world--a scheme of things--an order. The search of a life for its own place in the order, its relation to everything it contacts, produces the paintings. Show less

Date Issued

1951

Identifier

FSU_historic_akw1826

Format

Thesis

Title

Analysis of NaCl-LiCl Taste Discrimination Using Electrophysiological and Behavioral Methods.

The detection of salty taste stimuli depends on two salt-sensing transduction pathways that involve membrane channels on the surface of fungiform taste bud cells located on the anterior tongue in rats. These two pathways are the transcellular, amiloride-sensitive pathway and paracellular, amiloride-insensitive pathway. The transcellular is specific to NaCl and LiCl. Past studies have shown that LiCl and NaCl generate specific responses from taste nerves and that they are indistinguishable in... Show moreThe detection of salty taste stimuli depends on two salt-sensing transduction pathways that involve membrane channels on the surface of fungiform taste bud cells located on the anterior tongue in rats. These two pathways are the transcellular, amiloride-sensitive pathway and paracellular, amiloride-insensitive pathway. The transcellular is specific to NaCl and LiCl. Past studies have shown that LiCl and NaCl generate specific responses from taste nerves and that they are indistinguishable in behavioral tests. To this end, we generated the first dose-response curve comparing various concentrations of NaCl and LiCl and performed brief-access behavioral tests in order to determine if there is differential firing of the chorda tympani nerve to NaCl and LiCl stimulation and whether rats can discriminate between the two salts. We found that CT responses are higher for LiCl and NaCl for most concentrations used. This same trend was found when the salts were adulterated with amiloride. Measurements of the phasic portion of the CT response showed a larger amiloride-sensitive portion to the CT nerve response to NaCl than to LiCl. This difference may be sufficient to mediate LiCl/NaCl discrimination. We also found that rats were able to distinguish 30 mM LiCl from 30 mM NaCl, 30 mM LiCl from water, and 75 mM LiCl from water. These results hint to the possibility that with particular concentrations and particular tests, rats should be able to discriminate between NaCl and LiCl. Our results are similar to past research showing that LiCl responses are greater than NaCl responses. Our findings also suggest that there is differential signaling between NaCl and LiCl at the level of the whole nerve. Show less

Date Issued

2013

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-7454

Format

Thesis

Title

An Analysis of Safe Driving Behaviors: Before, during, and after Two "Click It or Ticket" Model Interventions.

In 2004, 3,242 people died in traffic-related fatalities in Florida. The present study looked to further investigate the behaviors and factors related to safe operation of a motor vehicle. Automobile drivers were observed while stopped at traffic lights along a set route in a Southeastern city during this study. Observations were conducted by research teams driving a 6.9 mile route during peak evening traffic hours. At stoplights the research teams observed the drivers directly to their right... Show moreIn 2004, 3,242 people died in traffic-related fatalities in Florida. The present study looked to further investigate the behaviors and factors related to safe operation of a motor vehicle. Automobile drivers were observed while stopped at traffic lights along a set route in a Southeastern city during this study. Observations were conducted by research teams driving a 6.9 mile route during peak evening traffic hours. At stoplights the research teams observed the drivers directly to their right and recorded data on seatbelt and cellular phone usage, gender of the driver, type of vehicle, vehicle color, and weather conditions. Observations were collected over a 10 month period to evaluate any possible effects due to changes in population. Two implementations of Click-It-Or-Ticket model programs were evaluated using ABA designs. Show less

For my dissertation, I used whole nerve and single-cell recording methods to investigate the influence of organic anions and organic acids on sodium responses by the chorda tympani nerve (CT) that innervates taste buds on the anterior tongue. For single cell recording, I focused on the responses of NaCl-specialist and acid generalist neurons, the two major neuron types of the chorda tympani with robust salt sensitivity. To assess the influence of organic anions on sodium responses (Chapter 2)... Show moreFor my dissertation, I used whole nerve and single-cell recording methods to investigate the influence of organic anions and organic acids on sodium responses by the chorda tympani nerve (CT) that innervates taste buds on the anterior tongue. For single cell recording, I focused on the responses of NaCl-specialist and acid generalist neurons, the two major neuron types of the chorda tympani with robust salt sensitivity. To assess the influence of organic anions on sodium responses (Chapter 2), I examined the responses of the whole nerve and both neuron types to a broad concentration range of NaCl (an inorganic salt) and Na gluconate (an organic salt). The CT nerve responded better to NaCl than to Na gluconate at each concentration; however both salts were differentially represented by NaCl-specialist and acid-generalist neuron types. In particular, I showed that NaCl specialists responded to sodium salts with short-response latencies and high-response frequencies--spike latency and spike frequency was virtually unaffected by the large organic anion, gluconate. Responses to NaCl in NaCl specialists were attenuated by application of benzamil, indicating that they respond to sodium via apical epithelial sodium channels (ENaCs). In contrast, acid generalists responded to sodium salts with longer-response latencies and lower-response frequencies than their NaCl specialist counterparts--gluconate severely attenuated spike frequency and increased spike latency. NaCl responses in acid generalists were unaffected by benzamil or SB366791, indicating that they do not respond to sodium via ENaCs or via transient receptor potential vanilloid receptor 1 (TRPV1) channels, respectively. Interestingly, humans report that Na gluconate tastes less salty and they recognize it more slowly than NaCl, similar to the response characteristics of acid-generalist neurons. It is possible that the receptor mechanism(s) of acid generalists is functionally conserved in humans but this awaits future investigation. To assess the influence of an organic acid (Chapter 3) on sodium responses, I examined the responses by the whole nerve and by both neuron types to a broad concentration range of acetic acid, NaCl, and mixtures of NaCl with acetic acid. I showed that the rat CT nerve and acid-generalist neurons responded in a concentration-dependent manner across the entire range of acetic-acid concentrations. Acid-generalist neurons responded with progressively increasing spike frequency and decreasing spike latency as acetic acid concentration increased. NaCl-specialist neurons were virtually unresponsive to acetic acid. Interestingly, CT nerve responses to acetic acid/NaCl mixtures were less than the sum of responses to each stimulus component, indicating that either acetic acid or NaCl decreased the responses of the other. In NaCl specialists, responses to NaCl/acetic acid mixtures were less than the sum of responses to each component, but there was no apparent concentration dependent effect of acetic acid evoked inhibition. In contrast, responses to acetic acid/NaCl mixtures in acid generalists were additive, equal to the sum of responses to each stimulus component. Together, results from both studies indicate that NaCl specialists respond to sodium salts through apical ENaCs and are attenuated with acetic acid, whereas acid-generalists responded to sodium salts and acetic acid through separate mechanisms whose origins are still largely unknown. The pronounced "anion effect" in acid generalists indicates that this unknown receptor site is not apical, rather it is most likely located deeper within the epithelium--below the tight-junctional barrier. Show less

Date Issued

2011

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-5525

Format

Thesis

Title

Antisocial and Histrionic Personality Traits: Searching for the Common Ground.

Two theories have been proposed to explain the covariation between antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), histrionic personality disorder (HPD), and psychopathy: the sex differentiated-manifestation hypothesis (e.g., Hamburger, Hogben, & Lilienfeld, 1996) and the impulsivity hypothesis (e.g., Cale & Lilienfeld, 2002). The current study examined these two hypotheses in an undergraduate sample using dimensional constructs (e.g., symptom severity ratings). The current study also attempted to... Show moreTwo theories have been proposed to explain the covariation between antisocial personality disorder (ASPD), histrionic personality disorder (HPD), and psychopathy: the sex differentiated-manifestation hypothesis (e.g., Hamburger, Hogben, & Lilienfeld, 1996) and the impulsivity hypothesis (e.g., Cale & Lilienfeld, 2002). The current study examined these two hypotheses in an undergraduate sample using dimensional constructs (e.g., symptom severity ratings). The current study also attempted to test these theories while controlling for overlapping symptoms of borderline personality disorder (BPD). Direct tests of the two models provided no support for either. When BPD symptoms were controlled for, ASPD and HPD symptoms were no longer related to each other or to impulsivity. Implications of this study and recommendations for future studies are discussed. Show less

This study uses two experiments to explore the extent to which goal pursuits affect automatic motor responses. At the beginning of each experiment, participants were given experiences that induced certain goal states. Participants then completed a lexical decision task in which they responded (using approach and avoidance arm movements) to stimuli consistent with, irrelevant to, or in opposition to achieving their goal. Of interest was whether facilitation of the responses occurred when the... Show moreThis study uses two experiments to explore the extent to which goal pursuits affect automatic motor responses. At the beginning of each experiment, participants were given experiences that induced certain goal states. Participants then completed a lexical decision task in which they responded (using approach and avoidance arm movements) to stimuli consistent with, irrelevant to, or in opposition to achieving their goal. Of interest was whether facilitation of the responses occurred when the direction of the movement (approaching or avoiding the stimuli) was consistent with achieving one's goal (and whether inhibition of the responses occurred when the direction of the movement was in opposition to one achieve one's goal). The results of both experiments show that participants' responses were not affected by their goal-states as predicted. Possible explanations are discussed. Show less

Date Issued

2009

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-3344

Format

Thesis

Title

Are All Measures of Inhibition Creatively Equal?: The Differential and Interaction Effects of Inhibition Type on Creativity.

Previous research revealed mixed findings regarding the direction of the relation of inhibition and creativity. The goal of this study was to determine if the task used to measure inhibition accounts for this variance in direction and if these various tasks would demonstrate convergent validity, despite contention that inhibition cannot be deconstructed into separate types. It was hypothesized that attention inhibition measures would correlate negatively to creativity, whereas memory... Show morePrevious research revealed mixed findings regarding the direction of the relation of inhibition and creativity. The goal of this study was to determine if the task used to measure inhibition accounts for this variance in direction and if these various tasks would demonstrate convergent validity, despite contention that inhibition cannot be deconstructed into separate types. It was hypothesized that attention inhibition measures would correlate negatively to creativity, whereas memory inhibition measures would correlate positively. Confirmatory factor analyses showed that the inhibition measures did not demonstrate convergent validity based on the proposed two factor model of attention and memory inhibition. Also, most of the inhibition tasks were unrelated to creativity and intelligence, though the n-back task, a memory inhibition measure, positively predicted scores on the Remote Associates Test, a convergent thinking creativity test (r(59) = .39, p = 0.002). Show less

Date Issued

2015

Identifier

FSU_2016SP_Rotolo_fsu_0071N_12973

Format

Thesis

Title

Are Implicit Learning Abilities in Language and Music Related?.

Creator

Boebinger, Dana, Psychology

Abstract/Description

One active area of psycholinguistics research seeks to determine whether language acquisition occurs through domain-specific processes or domain-general processes. In other words, are the cognitive resources dedicated to language learning specific to language, or are they part of a more general learning mechanism? One intriguing strategy for investigating this question is through the comparative use of language and music: each is a complex system in which basic auditory elements are combined... Show moreOne active area of psycholinguistics research seeks to determine whether language acquisition occurs through domain-specific processes or domain-general processes. In other words, are the cognitive resources dedicated to language learning specific to language, or are they part of a more general learning mechanism? One intriguing strategy for investigating this question is through the comparative use of language and music: each is a complex system in which basic auditory elements are combined in hierarchical sequences governed by abstract rules. To understand either language or music, a person must learn these syntactic rules and generalize them to new situations. This study used an artificial grammar construct to investigate whether people learn and process musical and linguistic syntax similarly, and whether there is a correlation between a person's ability to learn complex grammatical systems in multiple modalities. The effect of previous musical experience on sequence learning was also examined. Results showed virtually no correlation between the three implicit learning tasks, suggesting that there is no domain-general implicit learning ability. Show less

Date Issued

2012

Identifier

FSU_migr_uhm-0100

Format

Thesis

Title

Are you infected with the social contagion?.

Creator

Rottenberg, Sophie, Department of Psychology

Abstract/Description

Social contagion concerns are people's elevated apprehensions that having interactions with a stigmatized outgroup like lesbians and gay men, will result in being misclassified as a member of this outgroup. This concern typically results in anxiety about interacting with the outgroup, as well as public derogation of gay men and lesbians. We hypothesized that those who view videos where people are expressing non-prejudice views will decrease their contagion concern. At Florida State University... Show moreSocial contagion concerns are people's elevated apprehensions that having interactions with a stigmatized outgroup like lesbians and gay men, will result in being misclassified as a member of this outgroup. This concern typically results in anxiety about interacting with the outgroup, as well as public derogation of gay men and lesbians. We hypothesized that those who view videos where people are expressing non-prejudice views will decrease their contagion concern. At Florida State University we conducted experiments to determine if our question could be answered conclusively. Participants entered the lab and were first asked to fill out a personality survey to assess their baseline contagion concern. They were given a set of videos to watch, in these videos were scripted monologues from different FSU students about their support for gay marriage, or they viewed videos supporting or opposing lowering the drinking age (which was the experimental control). After they viewed the short clips they were instructed to fill out a questionnaire which measured the participant's level of contagion concern. Our hypothesis was confirmed by our findings which indicated that those who viewed the videos containing the nondiscriminatory views supporting gay marriage exhibited a lower level of contagion concern. These results support the claim that decreasing the perceptions of others' prejudice can decrease individual contagion concern. Show less

Date Issued

2015

Identifier

FSU_migr_undergradsymposium2015-0020

Format

Citation

Title

Assessing the Effectiveness of Modular Psychotherapy in a Community Clinic.

Although research has supported the use of empirically supported treatments (ESTs) for psychological disorders, many clinicians prefer to use a modular approach integrating interventions from a number of different ESTs. The current study examined the effectiveness of modular therapy in a community clinic serving patients with a wide variety of diagnoses and complex problems. Records were reviewed for 291 adult psychotherapy outpatients; 120 patients received modular therapy and 171 received a... Show moreAlthough research has supported the use of empirically supported treatments (ESTs) for psychological disorders, many clinicians prefer to use a modular approach integrating interventions from a number of different ESTs. The current study examined the effectiveness of modular therapy in a community clinic serving patients with a wide variety of diagnoses and complex problems. Records were reviewed for 291 adult psychotherapy outpatients; 120 patients received modular therapy and 171 received a single EST. First, the two treatment approaches were compared using a propensity score weighting procedure to correct for the lack of random assignment. Results indicated that there were no significant differences between the treatment types on measures of functional improvement. Next, the effectiveness of modular therapy in the current clinic was assessed using a meta-analytic benchmarking strategy. Results indicated that the unstandardized effect size outcomes for therapist rated improvement were similar to benchmarks from prior research studies. Depressed patients in the current sample showed less improvement compared to prior efficacy studies, but had similar improvement to prior effectiveness studies. Treatment implications and future research directions of these findings were discussed. Show less

Date Issued

2012

Identifier

FSU_migr_etd-5231

Format

Thesis

Title

Assessing the Universal Structure of Personality in Early Adolescence: The NEO-PI-R and NEO-PI-3 in 24 Cultures.

The structure and psychometric characteristics of the NEO Personality Inventory-3 (NEO-PI-3), a more readable version of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R), are examined and compared with NEO-PI-R characteristics using data from college student observer ratings of 5,109 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years from 24 cultures. Replacement items in the PI-3 showed on average stronger item-total correlations and slightly improved facet reliabilities compared with the NEO-PI-R in both... Show moreThe structure and psychometric characteristics of the NEO Personality Inventory-3 (NEO-PI-3), a more readable version of the Revised NEO Personality Inventory (NEO-PI-R), are examined and compared with NEO-PI-R characteristics using data from college student observer ratings of 5,109 adolescents aged 12 to 17 years from 24 cultures. Replacement items in the PI-3 showed on average stronger item-total correlations and slightly improved facet reliabilities compared with the NEO-PI-R in both English- and non-English-speaking samples. NEO-PI-3 replacement items did not substantially affect scale means compared with the original scales. Analyses across and within cultures confirmed the intended factor structure of both versions when used to describe young adolescents. The authors discuss implications of these cross-cultural findings for the advancement of studies in adolescence and personality development across the lifespan. Show less

This study evaluated a vignette style measure (CRISES) of children's response styles to sadness. It looked at the relationship between rumination and depression in children and tested Nolen-Hoeksema's response styles theory of depression, which was partly developed to explain the emergence of sex differences in depression in adolescence. The theory posits that sex differences in response styles precede sex differences in depression that emerge in adolescence. Adolescent stressors were also... Show moreThis study evaluated a vignette style measure (CRISES) of children's response styles to sadness. It looked at the relationship between rumination and depression in children and tested Nolen-Hoeksema's response styles theory of depression, which was partly developed to explain the emergence of sex differences in depression in adolescence. The theory posits that sex differences in response styles precede sex differences in depression that emerge in adolescence. Adolescent stressors were also hypothesized to interact with rumination to predict changes in depression. With use of the CRISES measure, the positive correlation between rumination and distraction observed in previous studies examining young populations disappeared. More importantly, the CRISES was able to demonstrate the cross-situation consistency of response styles in a sample of children. Although no sex differences were found, response styles theory can be useful in explaining individual differences in symptoms of depression as levels of rumination and distraction were concurrently associated in the predicted directions with scores on the CDI. Furthermore, an interaction of stress and distraction demonstrated the protective influence of distraction from depressive symptomatology in the face of changes in stress. Show less

There has been much speculation about the effects of motivation for literacy on literacy skills; yet, the relations between these variables not been established in preschool, the developmental period during which children begin to acquire literacy skills. This study used a new measure of motivation for literacy, the Preschool Interest in Literacy Experiences Scale (PILES), in which children report their interest in literacy related activities. Overall, the validity and reliability of the... Show moreThere has been much speculation about the effects of motivation for literacy on literacy skills; yet, the relations between these variables not been established in preschool, the developmental period during which children begin to acquire literacy skills. This study used a new measure of motivation for literacy, the Preschool Interest in Literacy Experiences Scale (PILES), in which children report their interest in literacy related activities. Overall, the validity and reliability of the PILES was not established. However, parent reports of literacy interest and exposure and direct measures of children's early literacy skills were significantly correlated. These findings suggest motivation for literacy impacts early literacy skills even in young children. They also suggest motivation for literacy may increase early literacy skills because it leads to greater exposure to literacy. Show less